


7 Days of Therapy

by Talltalesbysthefire



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Author is a Toby Smith | Tubbo Apologist, Depictions of Abuse, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Manipulation, Fluff and Angst, Manipulation, My First Work in This Fandom, Not an accurate depiction of therapy, Panic Attacks, Puffy is the only adult ever, Toby Smith | Tubbo Angst, Toby Smith | Tubbo Has PTSD, Toby Smith | Tubbo Has a Bad Time, Toby Smith | Tubbo is Not Okay, Toby Smith | Tubbo-centric, We love Puffy here, talk of abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-22
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-14 13:08:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,927
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28921098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Talltalesbysthefire/pseuds/Talltalesbysthefire
Summary: When Tommy said Tubbo was stopping by for therapy, Puffy wasn’t sure that she believed him. It was a miracle that Tommy even showed up at first and Tubbo was even worse. Give it to the two traumatized kids to refuse that they were traumatized. Tommy had made leaps and strides in the 6 months that he had been coming, but he still had a lot of habits to unlearn and a long way to go. Puffy was a little scared of what Tubbo was like. Poor kid hadn’t been sleeping according to Tommy. But today was Sunday and her day off, this problem (if Tubbo did show up) was for Monday Puffy.
Comments: 35
Kudos: 293





	1. Monday

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoy :D!! Tubbo gets help, yay! Puffy is the best therapist. It’s a bit rushed but the other chapters will be better, I promise!!! Remember to drink water and take care of yourselves

When Tommy said Tubbo was stopping by for therapy, Puffy wasn’t sure that she believed him. It was a miracle that Tommy even showed up at first and Tubbo was even worse. Give it to the two traumatized kids to refuse that they were traumatized. Tommy had made leaps and strides in the 6 months that he had been coming, but he still had a lot of habits to unlearn and a long way to go. Puffy was a little scared of what Tubbo was like. Poor kid hadn’t been sleeping according to Tommy. But today was Sunday and her day off, this problem (if Tubbo did show up) was for Monday Puffy. 

Monday  
On Monday, Tubbo showed up. Puffy had been sitting in her new chair, she and Sam both slaved over this chair for days, when there was a little knock on the door. Already, Puffy could rule out Tommy as he would forgo knocking and just barge right in (not that she minded). It could’ve been Niki, but Puffy was sure she would’ve gotten a message if that were the case. Nevertheless, Puffy opened the door. Standing there, on her doorstep, was Tubbo. The kid looked worse for wear, still having that stupid suit on and eyebags darker than the End. His smile didn’t quite reach his eyes and he looked at Puffy like she was a temperamental bomb. She opened her mouth to say something, decided against it when she saw him flinch, and just opened the door wider. He just stood there.   
“Tubbo, would you like to come in?” Puffy asked, as gently as possible, as if coaxing a startled deer. Only then, when he was given permission, did he take his first step into her office.  
And here they are, Tubbo and Puffy, sitting in silence. Tubbo was staring down at his hands, having been doing that for the last 30 minutes, when Puffy decided it was up to her to break the ice.  
“Alright Tubbo, we don’t have to do anything that you don’t want to, but I do have to read to you what this is about. In here, anything you say will be known only to me and you. The only time that will be breached is if you are a danger to yourself or to others. The notes that I take only help mark progress and keep thoughts, these will not be shown to anyone else. Do you understand?”  
There was a nod.   
More silence.   
The sun went down. Silence. Finally, Puffy sighed and moved to start packing up for the day.  
“Tubbo, I’m really sorry but the day is almost over. It’s totally fine if you don’t wanna talk but don’t you wanna g-.”  
“There is nothing wrong with me.” Puffy sat back down.  
“What?”  
“There is nothing wrong with me” More desperation, if Puffy was a weaker man she would’ve called it conviction. But Puffy wasn’t weak nor was she a man.  
“No matter what Tommy says, I don’t need help. Why am I even here? I should be at Snowchester making sure everything is ok. Foolish Just moved in and I’m not even ther-”  
“Tubbo.”  
“And Ranboo, he said that he wanted to hang out today! I mean I did tell him, but what if he thinks that I’m not fit to be his friend!”  
“Tubbo.”   
“Besides it’s not like I have anything that even remotely compares to Tommy and Ranboo, they’ve suffered so much and here I am taking up time, like always, when they could’ve used this! I’m just a fail-”  
“TUBBO!”  
He recoiled, nearly throwing himself off the couch with the force of the flinch. Puffy watch, a little horrified, as Tubbo curled in on himself, arms thrown up.   
He was shaking.  
“Tubbo.” She tried again, keeping her voice quiet, “Will you breathe for me?”  
“I. . don’t know. . how,” he gasped out, head in between knees.  
‘That’s ok, just have to follow my instructions. I know you can do it, just feel your chest,” he put a shaky hand on his chest, “Good, now breathe in and hold it.”   
His head shot up at the mention of holding his breath. Puffy just looked at him. Tubbo held his breath.  
“Ok now let it go, slowly.”  
He exhaled.   
“You’re doing so well. Now keep doing that, but as you do find me 5 different things that you see right now, I just need you to trust me”  
Uhm, ok. You’re captain hat in the corner, the computer on the desk behind you, my-uh my suit, your notebook and my shoes. Tubbo had managed to reign in his breath so Puffy didn’t think that she needed to continue the countdown. They sat there, Tubbo’s breath evening out as he calmed down. He wouldn’t meet her eyes.  
“Tubbo,” Puffy said, she seemed to be saying that a lot, “How often does that happen?”   
He looked at her finally with a sheepish expression on his face. He looked scared. Puffy felt her heart wrench as she took in the shell of a boy that she had met all those months ago. There was almost no trace of him.   
“Uhm, they happen a couple of times a week,” Tubbo said, “They used to happen more with Schlatt, but he just said it was a part of growing up!”  
Puffy felt sick. A part of her wanted to revive Schlatt just to put him 6 feet under again and the other wanted to keep him as far away from Tubbo as possible. But she was a therapist and she had a job to do. Puffy was gonna help this boy no matter what.   
“Well those are called panic attacks and they are not a sign of growing up. We’ll learn to deal with them as we go on and we don’t have to do it now, but I want you to notice every time you have that same feeling ok?” Tubbo’s face crumpled as he took in the information that was presented to him, then right as Puffy watched, his expression gave way. Tubbo’s face was blank.   
“I should really go,” he said, already getting up, Puffy rose to her feet, panicked to let him go in this state.  
“I don’t think”  
“I’m going back to Snowchester,” Tubbo said voice weirdly empty, “Thank you for the session, Puffy but there is nothing wrong with me”  
He walked like a President should, she thought sadly. As much as she wanted to say he looked like one, all she could see were the shoes that were too big and a suit that hung too loose. A kid playing dress up in a world for adults. Already disadvantaged from the start. Puffy watched him until he was out of sight and then closed the door. On Monday, there was a stalemate.


	2. Tuesday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long, I just wanted this to be as angsty as I could!!! On this episode of 7 days we talk about Mr. Minecraft and how Tubbo's family life kind of, really sucks. We'll touch on this a bit more as we go on but for now have a whole chapter!!! Thank y'all for the support and I'm so happy that you are enjoying it so far!! I hope you enjoy the rest just as much and remember to drink water and take care of yourself. Stay safe!!  
> P.S. if you see any grammar mistakes or spelling mistakes, no you didn't

Tuesday  
On Tuesday, Tubbo came back. Puffy was honestly expecting him to never set foot near her therapist building after what had happened yesterday but she wasn’t mad that he was here. He was sporting his usual empty smile and suit but he was here. She opened her mouth to welcome him in but before she could get a word out he interrupted her.  
“Tommy said that I owe him for the exile and so here I am,” he slipped past her and sat at the same spot on the couch that he sat at yesterday, “This doesn’t mean that I have anything wrong with me.”  
“Of course not,” Puffy said, grabbing her notebook, “That’s not what I’m here for. I’m here to help you emotionally process your thoughts and feelings. You don’t have to have ‘something wrong with you’ to go to therapy.”  
“Oh.” Tubbo looked surprised. Puffy made a mental note to remind people what therapy was actually about.  
“Ok. . .” Tubbo said slowly, “I can talk about feelings.”  
And off he went talking about feelings, except they weren’t his feelings.  
“. . .Tommy went through hell. . . Called me a monster and he was right. . . Working with Technoblade.” It was things that Puffy had heard before, once a week to be more specific. These were Tommy’s feelings.  
“Tubbo, do you know how to talk about your feelings?”  
“What?”  
“As much as I love that you are talking to me about these things, what you're saying is a defense mechanism in order to leave emotional wounds unopened,” Puffy put it bluntly, “You deflecting.” It was said like a statement.  
Tubbo didn’t look that surprised and Puffy couldn’t shake the feeling that he’s had to do this before. He seemed used to the fact that others wouldn’t look deeper into what he says. Puffy needed to cut the bullshit.  
“I can help you work through this, if you want? The only thing you need to do is trust me.” That might've been the wrong thing to say as Tubbo’s face closed off, but it was the only thing that Puffy could say. If this was going to work, Puffy needed trust. No matter what, she was going to earn his trust. This was her reaching out an olive branch and it was up to him to take it.  
Tubbo reached out.  
“What do I need to do?” He said, conviction in his tone. This was a start and it was a big one but the hardest part was yet to come.  
“Alright, what would be easiest to talk about? We can start with your day if you would like.” Puffy said, getting comfortable in her chair.  
“I thought we had to talk about meaningful things in therapy,” Tubbo replied, leaning back on the couch, “Wasn’t that the whole point?”  
“I mean sure,” Puffy said, “But what we’re doing is getting used to talking about feelings so you can adequately portray what you experienced. Besides there are no rules for therapy, it’s whatever you want to talk about.”  
“Whatever I want to talk about?”  
“Yes”  
“Then I want to talk about Philza.”  
Oh.  
“Oh.”  
Tubbo panicked.  
“Was that not ok? Should we talk about something else? I’m sorry! We can talk about something else!”  
“It’s ok to talk about Phil,” Puffy reassured him, “I’m just impressed that you recognized that this is something you need to talk about.’’  
He sat up a little straighter.  
“I’m ready whenever you are,” she said, tapping her pen on her notepad.  
“Ok. . .Well this is going to sound stupid bu-”  
Puffy interrupted him.  
“Nothing you say is going to sound stupid because you are talking about your feelings. This is about you and we’re getting rid of the word stupid and should. You feel how you feel and we work on it. I’m sorry for interrupting you. Go ahead.”  
“Alright,” he said, nervously “as you know Philza is, uhm I mean was, my dad. He supposedly found me on the side of the road and I’ve lived with him all of my life. Sometimes I feel like he doesn’t actually view me as his son.”  
The person who knows Tubbo wants to assure him that Philza cares about him, but Puffy was in therapist mode and this was about Tubbo. She stayed silent.  
“And I know that I’ve never been his favorite but it would’ve been nice to be cared for at least a little bit. Like one time, Techno and I were sparing because he wanted us to be ready for the real world and Techno’s voices got the better of him and he stabbed me straight through the stomach. Of course I don’t blame Techno, but as I was crying out in pain I saw Phil. I remember thinking Dad! It’s dad, he’ll help make me feel better! And then he ran straight past me. Right to Techno. He started asking IF he was ok, IF he needed help! I was right there! I remember waking up 3 days later and the only people who were there were Tommy and Wilbur. Techno and Phil had already left for another adventure. I would always feel so guilty for being sad because they would always get me a cool little thing from wherever they went. I didn’t want a trinket, I wanted a dad. Maybe I don’t deserve one. He must have known back then that I would turn out to be a disappointment.”  
He continued.  
“I was the last one that Phil had taken under his wing and it was very obvious. Tommy and Wilbur were always close and I think they resented me a bit for being there when Phil wasn’t always there himself. They eventually got over it but they would always talk about things that I wouldn’t understand. I mean Tommy deserves a brother to care for him and love him and for a time that was Wilbur. Tommy looked up to Wil and I wasn’t cool enough or old enough to be anyone's favorite. Sometimes I would go to bed and I would hear the four of them talking and laughing. During those times I would feel like an outsider. But then there were times where Phil told me he was proud of me and he meant it. Where I would get to talk without feeling left out. Those were my favorite times.  
And I mean, I looked up to Wilbur too. Maybe that’s why I did all the things I did. When Wil came to Tommy and told him about this thing called a government, I followed him to L’manberg. With him, governments were safe and people were protected. When rules were followed, no one got hurt.”  
At this point, Tubbo had a wry smile on his face. Bitterness flowing through the cracks of the facade. Puffy wanted to wrap the child on her couch in a hug but this was not the time. He was talking and she had a feeling he had never had the chance to do this before.  
“Then came Schlatt. Every day I was under him I wished for Phil to come back. To help. Then he did. After Wil had lost it. After I had died twice. After I was given a job that was impossible to fill and my home blew up. Even then, when I had come to him asking for help with the presidency and he had promised to be my earthly wisdom and help. He let me down. I knew that he was sneaking off to help Techno in the night. I don’t know why I just didn’t let him leave permanently. It was probably because I was selfish and wanted him to stay. I will be the first to admit that the butcher army was a terrible idea, but I was just a kid. That day I think that I died in his eyes. He saw me as I saw myself. A monster. And the worst part is, he’s not wrong but I had hoped that he would finally see me as someone that he loved. Family.”  
“In his eyes, I’m right next to Schlatt and I’m reminded of that every time I look at him. Then he blew up L’manberg. Again. I don’t know if he wanted to teach a lesson but he took away my home. The thing that he could never give me. He hates me. I’m the enemy and nothing more. The only sons that he had are Techno, Wilbur and Tommy. He was saying that the government killed his son, but what about him. He killed so many and laughed while doing it. I’m just tired. Bone dead tired and I just want a family. Maybe that’s asking for too much.”  
He sat back, almost swallowed by the couch as he seemed to shrink in on himself. Puffy was speechless, words taken out her mouth.  
“Thank you for telling me this. It took a lot of courage to do that. This might sound counterintuitive but have you expressed this in any other way?”  
“What do you mean?”  
“Well, have you heard of writing about your feelings and burning the paper?”  
“No. . .”  
“One thing that we can do is work through the emotions vai letters. Working through things is much easier when you're writing. But before we get to processing, I want to say something. I’m so incredibly proud of you. I’m saying this as an unbiased party and as a therapist, you are so strong. The sad thing is you shouldn't be. I’m so sorry that you weren’t able to be a kid. I want you to know that a good number of this is also because of others and you shouldn't carry the guilt alone. You are not a monster. And you won’t ever be one.”  
Puffy could tell that Tubbo didn’t believe her, face growing uncomfortable at the words. He ducked his head down and tugged at the hair that covered his eyes.  
“I should go,” he muttered, “Thank you for listening to me but it’s getting dark out.”  
He’s running from his feelings, a voice at the back of Puffy’s head whispered. She shooed it away, this kid has probably never told anyone his feelings without feeling shamed, of course he’s running away. Talking openly about how he feels will take time but it’s time that Puffy was willing to spend.  
Puffy smiled at him, getting up and heading to the door, “Of course, that’s what I’m here for. If you have anything at all or you ever feel unsafe, shoot me a message or come get me.”  
Tubbo nodded at her and made the journey home. Puffy again watched him until he was out of view.  
On Tuesday, progress was made.


End file.
